Shots Fired Near Weis Press Conference In Englewood

By Anna Deem in News on Apr 3, 2010 7:00PM

As Police Supt. Jody Weis gave a press conference on Friday afternoon in the Englewood neighborhood to discuss the recent wave of violence that left 41 people shot and four dead, an ironic report of shots being fired several blocks away resulted in Weis cutting the interview short. Police discovered that a 25-year-old man was shot at 69th and Paulina and taken to the hospital in critical condition.

In his speech, Weis announced that police were going to combat the warm-weather crime wave by cracking down on "large gatherings, illegal parties, and large house parties," as it was a house party that led to three separate shootings and one death in the Englewood neighborhood this past week. "These unauthorized parties often involve underage drinking, little or no security and are held in unlicensed locations," Weis said in his speech. "They are simply not equipped to handle large crowds. They are a disaster waiting to happen."

Weis said that police will also work on enforcing curfew violations, add more unit patrols in targeted areas, and focus on "problem establishments," like bars. "It shows the complete brazen lack of respect for authority." Weis said, drawing attention to the fact that the second Englewood shooting occurred in the presence of three dozen armed and uniformed police officers. "The question that I have to ask is, what would they do when we're not here?" [Chicago Sun-Times]